PUBLIC ORDER
Government Laboratory
The Government Laboratory's Forensic Science Division plays a vital role in the criminal justice system in Hong Kong by providing comprehensive scientific services and expert opinion in respect of scientific evidence to the Judiciary and other law enforcement departments. The high quality of its services has gained increasing recognition and attracted more demand for them from the private sector. This is subject to availability of resources and on a fee-paying basis.
The division has 144 staff, of whom 55 are experts in various scientific disciplines. Its nine specialist sections are organised into two functional groups: the Physical and Biochemical Evidence Group and the Drugs and Toxicology Group. The Instrumentation and Quality Assurance Section works directly under the head of the division, maintaining advanced instrumentation and organising quality assurance programmes.
The division has a wide range of modern instrumentation capable of sensitive and sophisticated analysis to the highest standards. These facilities enable staff to carry out a comprehensive range of forensic analytical services such as detailed analysis of paint, glass, textile fibres, body fluids, drugs, hydrocarbon fuels, plastics and a host of other materials commonly encountered in crimes such as homicide, armed robbery, sexual offences, arson, manufacturing and trafficking of dangerous drugs, commercial frauds and fatal traffic accidents. Specially trained experts are on 24-hour stand-by to assist in investigation scenes of crime.
In response to rising demands, the Physical and Biochemical Evidence Group's DNA Profiling Section has developed rapidly both in terms of technique and database compilation. Casework and the number of profiles done increased by 25 per cent over the year. The year also saw the first disputed DNA case brought to Hong Kong's courts and, despite the presence of an international DNA expert for the defence, the laboratory's findings were totally accepted.
The Questioned Document Section collaborates with experts of the US Secret Service Laboratory in the field of credit card forgery recognition and classification. A joint computer system has been developed which is about to be adopted by Interpol as the universal standard for world-wide investigation in the field.
The workload of the Drugs and Toxicology Group continued to increase substantially in 1994. A 13 per cent increase in controlled drug cases and 10 per cent increase in toxicology and urinalysis cases were recorded. The great majority of drug cases involved the opiates, but there were record seizures of both cannabis (3 116Kg) and methylamphetamine (133Kg). The increasing requests from Social Welfare Department to monitor the urine samples of young offenders on probation have added greatly to the group's work, since the greater number of samples cover a wider range of controlled drugs, requiring alternative confirmation methods.
Since the beginning of the year the division has put great effort into the revision and enforcement of a thorough quality management programme including a code of practice laying out the professional standards set for all staff. It is complete and awaits inspection by an accreditation authority from the USA. The laboratory is confident that the programme will meet the standards required for successful accreditation on any international scale.
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